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Texas: Malik Jefferson Energizes Longhorns Defense

By Cole Mentzel

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Back in December, the Texas Longhorns received some of the best news any college team can receive: the N0. 1 linebacker in the nation had committed to their team.

Malik Jefferson from Poteet High School ended up choosing Texas over Texas A&M and UCLA. Ranked as the No. 1 player in the state of Texas, Jefferson was one of the best commits the Longhorns had locked up in quite some time.

In his first game on the field, he was impressive. Though the Longhorns were not great overall, Jefferson was able to get into the backfield and make some bone-rattling tackles. The Texas defense was destroyed by the Notre Dame running game as C.J. Prosise had 98 yards and Malik Zaire was able to avoid a few sacks, but Jefferson made a few big plays that stood out.

The first was a beautiful read of the offensive line in which he ran straight through and stopped Notre Dame for a loss. The second was the play of the night for Texas. Jefferson once again got around the line and delivered an absolutely brutal hit to running back Josh Adams.

Jefferson is nicknamed ‘The Predator’ and he showed it against Notre Dame. He ended up finishing the game with 9 total tackles and 2.5 for a loss. The fans got a taste of what the future looked like for Texas despite a dismal performance from the rest of the team.

In his second game, Jefferson had 9 more tackles. However, he got involved in a different way this time. After a Rice fumble, Jefferson was able to scoop up the ball and take it to the end zone for his first college football touchdown. This time around, Texas was able to get a win, but Jefferson was just as much fun to watch as he was against Notre Dame.

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In the past few seasons, the Longhorns have had good defensive players, like Malcolm Brown, but it’s hard to think of someone who has had this much of an impact in just two games with the team. Even if Texas isn’t going to be competing to win the Big 12 this season, Texas fans will get to watch a star in the making.

The future looks bright and, although things aren’t great right now, Jefferson will be a key part of the Longhorns for the next few years, assuming that he chooses to stay that long. He already sounds like a leader and his play backs that up.

One telling sign of his future is his ability to play well against both good and bad teams. Notre Dame is a ranked team that could’ve been considered a title contender if Zaire had not fractured his ankle. Rice is just about the opposite of that of the Fighting Irish, but his play never wavered. He kept a high intensity against elite offenses and ones that are a little easier to stop.

Jefferson just has to stay focused on the basic fundamental elements of his game and the Longhorns defense and he will have the opportunity to rise to the top. Charlie Strong is a defense-oriented head coach with a promising player on the team.

Strong won’t let this talent go to waste.

Throughout his first few games as a Texas Longhorn, Jefferson has shown up in a big way. His play is electrifying and his ability to read the offense is incredible. If he continues to develop and stays healthy, Jefferson will be an intriguing choice for any NFL team looking to build their defense and add some strength to their team.

Next: SMU Looking To Build On Exciting Season

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